Road Striping Remains An Issue

Back On Selectmen's Agenda Next Month

September 28, 2004|By CHARLES STANNARD; Courant Staff Writer

KILLINGWORTH — The issue of painting a center-line stripe on town roads will be back on the board of selectmen agenda next month after Selectman Louis Annino Sr. moved for the striping of all town roads.

Annino offered the motion at Monday's board meeting, saying residents had been calling him to support road striping. But he failed to receive a second on an issue the board has bandied about for months.

First Selectman David Denvir told Annino there is no funding in the current budget for road striping because an appropriation of $2,380 to pay for the work had been removed during the budget preparation. He said the striping of 14 miles of roads in July was paid out of the 2003-04 budget.

``If you really want it funded, I think we should go to the board of finance and ask for the money to do it,'' Denvir said.

Annino withdrew the motion, but said he would ask that the road striping be included on the agenda of the board's Oct. 12 meeting.

The issue has been on the selectmen's table for nearly five months and is believed to have been a factor in the July 30 resignation of former Republican Selectman Charles Morgan.

Denvir had opposed the striping when it was approved by Annino and Morgan last spring and had favored holding a town meeting on the issue.

Earlier this month, nearly 100 voters opposed to the work petitioned for such a town meeting. On Sept. 13, Annino and Selectman Fred Dudek, who replaced Morgan, responded by declining to schedule one.

In other business Monday, the board deferred action on a proposal to spend $4,146 to install a flue-less propane heating system at the old farmhouse on the town-owned Bosco property on Route 81.

Last fall the Killingworth Historical Society made restoration of heat at the early 19th century farmhouse a priority. The two-story house has been without heat since late 2001.

The society last winter offered to contribute up to $4,470 for the project after the board of finance rejected the expenditure at a January meeting. But questions about whether a heating system could be installed without a chimney flue delayed completion of the work.

Denvir said Longo Associates Inc. of Glastonbury had submitted a proposal to install a flue-less heating system with a propane tank for $4,146, a quote that is lower than the price submitted last year by East River Energy of Guilford.

The board deferred action on the expenditure after Annino asked Denvir to contact representatives of the historical society to determine if the offer of an unconditional donation is still valid.

``I'm not sure if the offer still stands,'' Annino said. ``We have to do it and if we can get them to split some of this, fine.''